CLAUDINE (Kurodinu...!), by Riyoko Ikeda. First published in 1978 and first published in North America in 2018.
PLOT:
A century ago in rural France, Claudine was born to a wealthy family. Claudine had every advantage money could buy, but it could not change this fact: Claudine was born a woman, but knows himself to be a man. As Claudine grows into adulthood, we follow his life as each new love finds new ways to break his heart. Will Claudine ever find someone who accepts and loves them as they truly are?
Claudine is a remarkable work. It may be short, but it is achingly beautiful and terribly tragic. It is both incredibly progressive for its age and yet mired in the problematic tropes of its day.
Let's get the obvious out of the way: Claudine is about a transman, and that onto itself is incredible. We're only just now starting to see mainstream manga about (and sometimes created by) transfolk; to see a shojo manga from 40 years cover it is remarkable. That being said, Claudine is not perfect representation. While Ikeda is very clearly sympathetic towards Claudine's plight and his emotional turmoil, she still ends Claudine's story tragically. This was not unusual for the time, as Ikeda and her peers were influenced by both native and European works that were full of Tragic Dead Gays, but it casts Claudine's quest for unconditional love as one that is doomed from the start.
That being said, it's an incredible ride from beginning to end. We barely get a moment to rest as we watch Claudine grow and move from one girl to the next, pouring all of his love and enthusiasm into each one. It's impossible to not get swept up in his story, which makes his tragic end all the more heartbreaking. It's a must-read story not just because it's historically important to shojo manga and trans representation in manga, but because it's a beautifully sensitive work written by a master in her prime that needs to be experienced to be believed.
ART:
Visually, this book is breathtaking. Reading this, I was struck by the notion that even compared to peers like Moto Hagio and Keiko Takemiya, Riyoko Ikeda was on another level as an artist. Her compositions are positively lyrical, the images overlapping and flowing into one another with elegance and clarity. Her characters are beautiful, with their stylish attire, long graceful limbs, dreamy clouds of curly hair, and glittering eyes full of emotion. It's a glorious example of 1970s shojo art and every page makes want to clutch the book to my heart and roll around in glee.
RATING:
Claudine is a masterpiece. It might not entirely hold up to modern views on being transgender, but it's important, beautiful, and an emotional rollercoaster. Anyone who considers themselves a fan of old manga or shojo manga needs to read this for themselves.
This book is published by Seven Seas. It is currently in print.
Want a chance to win a $25 RightStuf gift certificate? Then check out our Holiday Review Giveaway to learn how to enter!
Let's get the obvious out of the way: Claudine is about a transman, and that onto itself is incredible. We're only just now starting to see mainstream manga about (and sometimes created by) transfolk; to see a shojo manga from 40 years cover it is remarkable. That being said, Claudine is not perfect representation. While Ikeda is very clearly sympathetic towards Claudine's plight and his emotional turmoil, she still ends Claudine's story tragically. This was not unusual for the time, as Ikeda and her peers were influenced by both native and European works that were full of Tragic Dead Gays, but it casts Claudine's quest for unconditional love as one that is doomed from the start.
That being said, it's an incredible ride from beginning to end. We barely get a moment to rest as we watch Claudine grow and move from one girl to the next, pouring all of his love and enthusiasm into each one. It's impossible to not get swept up in his story, which makes his tragic end all the more heartbreaking. It's a must-read story not just because it's historically important to shojo manga and trans representation in manga, but because it's a beautifully sensitive work written by a master in her prime that needs to be experienced to be believed.
ART:
Visually, this book is breathtaking. Reading this, I was struck by the notion that even compared to peers like Moto Hagio and Keiko Takemiya, Riyoko Ikeda was on another level as an artist. Her compositions are positively lyrical, the images overlapping and flowing into one another with elegance and clarity. Her characters are beautiful, with their stylish attire, long graceful limbs, dreamy clouds of curly hair, and glittering eyes full of emotion. It's a glorious example of 1970s shojo art and every page makes want to clutch the book to my heart and roll around in glee.
RATING:
Claudine is a masterpiece. It might not entirely hold up to modern views on being transgender, but it's important, beautiful, and an emotional rollercoaster. Anyone who considers themselves a fan of old manga or shojo manga needs to read this for themselves.
This book is published by Seven Seas. It is currently in print.
Want a chance to win a $25 RightStuf gift certificate? Then check out our Holiday Review Giveaway to learn how to enter!
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